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May 27, 2008
Turning Collections Into a Positive Customer Experience
By Bill Brown, Chordiant Software
Collections divisions at companies across industries are in the spotlight these days. And with the recent housing downturn and economic slowdown, collections needs are increasing at a staggering rate. According to Kaulkin Ginsberg, a Maryland-based market research firm, the U.S. now has more than 6,000 debt collection companies. According to the Federal Reserve, the consumer credit industry increased from $133.7 billion of consumer debt obligations in 1970 to $2.5 trillion of consumer debt obligations in November 2007, a compound annual growth rate of 8.2%. And the amount of outstanding revolving and non-revolving consumer credit increased at a compound annual growth rate of 6.4% from $1.3 trillion in June 1997, to $2.5 trillion in June 2007. Most people see collections as a negative and thankless process. It is typical in the unsecured lending arena that 15-20% of customers’ first contact with their service provider will be in Collections. That being said, it is one of the key moments that you can turn customer loyalty to an all time high - you have to make sure you understand the value of the customer and in real time decide how to treat this customer as more than a Collections account. Companies are realizing that there are technologies out there that can help turn collections into a positive and profitable customer experience opportunity as debt collection is climbing. There is software that can minimize losses and support good customers through difficult financial times, producing a positive, ongoing and optimized customer revenue stream out of collections. Solutions that include real-time predictive and adaptive decisioning are available to help high-volume customer interaction organizations make the collections process as positive and profitable as possible.  MarketPlace Customer Service as a Differentiator: The Road to Excellence at Overstock.com Companies are beginning to realize they don’t have the option of ignoring the quality of their customer’s experiences. Overstock.com realized that customers want service that is excellent, regardless of which channel is used. But they had to overcome some serious obstacles on the road to excellence. Read their story. New Research Report: Customer Experience Maturity Monitor Discover the five levels of customer experience maturity, ranging from Limited Capability to Experiential Master. Find out where your company stands, and explore what it takes to move from the base level to the peak. Download free research report here. Selling the "New Consumer" with Smart Conversations, Not Blind Automation Learn how to engage your customers in a great cross-channel conversation that will set your company apart. CustomerThink founder/CEO Bob Thompson reveals his latest research on the multi-channel buying experience, and Lisa Abbott of Genesys explains how to solve cross-channel challenge. Four Strategies to Shift Your Support Center from Surviving to Thriving With an economic upturn on the horizon, it's time to focus on how to gain a sustainable competitive edge. In this webinar, contact center guru Bill Price reveals how to improve the customer experience, reduce operational costs and retain top technical talent. TCE (Total Customer Experience) Model Building e-Workshop for Financial Services Providers [August 27, 09:00-10:30 GMT] This program is designed to help Marketing, Sales and Service Executives of Financial Services Providers to build a TCE model to monitor, manage, and enhance the total customer experience across multiple channels and touch-points throughout the whole customer lifecycle. Global Customer Experience Management Certification Program [Sep. 30-Oct. 1, Paris] Learn cutting-edge CEM methods from a team of international gurus. This 2-day course applies CEM essentials, strategies and methodologies on Marketing, Sales and Services; provides a framework with relevant guiding principles and tools for designing the best experience to your customers. Featured Links
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